They watched from Charon's boat the collapse of the temple Stheno and Euryale called 'home'. As it fell apart it sent undulations to the slow flowing water as if the riverbed would crack open and swallow them whole. Ash and dust and fire soared around the crumbling piles of boulders.
The queen looked around the docks where the scattered bodies of monsters they similarly battled with, lay in mutilation. Blood and spleen bathed the sand and stones, some had even started streaming with the river. She counted as many as she could until she lost, and deemed the number had equaled their kill. But they were four and outside there was only one Ares. Thinking about his appetite for bloodshed only made her knees shiver.
Back in the boat Euryale was sent with Orion on the cabin below where she could be guarded. Artemis and Apollo sat by each other, tending their fast healing wounds and cleaning their weapons. They were silver and gold together, too good to be twins they should have been born for romance but that was impossible.
And her eyes travelled to the grim figure beside the boatman Charon, their backs facing them. The King never spoke to her except for the last three words before pulling her, and them, off the chaos. A peculiar guilt suddenly scorched under her skin, momentarily softening her and yet recalling he and his harlot spending three nights together made her pride rocket. She could not help but grip on the railings in ire, thinking so much how they could manage to survive without his salvation.
A cylindrical golden flask was handed over to Athena, robbing off her senses. Artemis was suddenly standing beside her without notice.
"Drink up," the Huntress spoke, almost commanding. Athena took the flask and nodded. The water on her throat felt like redemption as she hungrily drained its content.
Artemis cleared her throat. "Aren't you supposed to say something?"
"What?" the Queen looked at her quizzically. The Huntress pointed a direction with her plain sight, towards the brooding Ares.
Athena shrugged her shoulders. "It was his choice to come. I never asked it of him."
"And?" Artemis furthered, "He came, didn't he. I think you owe him two words at least."
The Queen silently raged. Without a word she passed by her friend towards the stairs that would rather put more distance between her and their savior, and still with the flask in hand.
At the sound of the Queen's sandals thudding down the stairs, Orion was already on his feet. The Queen gave him a wordless permission to leave until she was left alone with the prisoner. She hadn't noticed she had been sighing for the fourth time, walking back and forth and stretching a sarcastic smile on Euryale.
"Aren't you supposed to be up there?" the Serpent asked, smugly sitting on the corner of a long bench attached to the boat itself. The creaking sounds of the vessel were too strong it seemed as if the ceiling would break in a single twist. Athena never looked at her as she placed her helm on a nearby table and walked around trying to empty the already emptied flask. She softly muttered. "Guardian duties."
Euryale rolled her slit eyes. "There are three other deities the Queen can command to guard a prisoner and yet here you are." With that Athena threw her a distant glare before shaking her head and not minding to answer.
"It bothers you, does it?" Euryale was half-smiling, not a smile of glee but of taunt with a hint of seduction.
The Queen heaved. "I do not know what you're talking about."
"Oh but you do," the Serpent hissed softly, this time fully smirking. "It hurts to not be able to keep a man, does it? A husband, to be exact." The slits on her eyes seemingly uncovering Athena's very core. She watched unhinged as Euryale slowly crawled on fours, her body fluidly moving as if her spine was made of gelatin, her emerald scales shining at each curve. Upon reaching the Queen's feet, Euryale reached out scaly arms to her hips to lift herself up, all the while sniffing the Queen's ankles, knees, inner thighs up to the space between her breasts until they were eye to eye. Goosprickles surfaced on Athena's arms as she felt the icy touches of the reptile.
The Queen bravely stared at the golden orbs slit vertically in the middle. She could smell the venomous breath when Euryale smiled, revealing fangs and split tongue.
"You have beauty… and a tempting flesh, all wasted" Euryale's sensual voice floated, raising a finger on Athena's right cheek.
"I was to be a virgin, in case you've forgotten," Athena's voice trailed off, her mind searching for a thousand answers how Euryale could have known their marital dilemma.
"And now you're not," the Serpent jeered, her finger lifting the Queen's chin, "You were broken in… broken in harshly. You have so much to learn… married to him, even making it more complex than it already is."
"I am a queen. I know my duties to Olympus." Athena broke them apart, pushing Euryale's hands and walking off towards the stairs and only making Euryale force laughter. Each sound almost made Athena's stomach cringe further than it had already went.
"And your duties to the King?"
"I have nothing to serve to that swine." Athena spat.
"Oh but you do…" Again the almost floating voice came in, "You have every bit of you to serve to him."
"And be his whore?" Athena chuckled sarcastically.
"Not his whore, his queen."
The Queen swallowed. She had just given Euryale the reaction needed.
"A man does everything he wants with a whore. She would concede. She would always concede. But a queen," Euryale's stare was sure to make Athena embarrassed, "Would make her King plead to his knees. He would want her… but not take her without her consent. Now,"… "Are you the King's whore or his Queen?"
The silence was enough to make Euryale laugh. "I thought so. You are a goddess of so many skills and strengths in weaponry but it takes special knowledge to use your best advantage – that sweet sweet ambrosia… between your legs."
"I've had enough of this talk," Athena cut in her most irate tone. "I've sought your aid in a much more important matter of life and death."
"With your consent for the King to stick his cock on another pit?" the Serpent went asked with a face that theatrically copied worry, making Athena's mouth dry. "Had I known earlier, I would have presented myself to the King earlier, weep in his feet and beg him to keep you from harming me and my sister… with only my body as a prize. It wouldn't be too late though." She began smirking again, "Tonight while you sleep, I will crawl in his bed."
"That is ridiculous. Ares would never…" Athena stopped midway, her voice dying off as her own words echoed on her head. You are a sore in the eye, a whoremonger, a rapist… I was told you were stupid… they were right.
"…Never be as stupid as you think him to be?" Euryale raised her brow. "Spare me the innocence, Queen, I know a man driven by high sexual urges by plain sight. Especially those who had been frustrated."
"Frustrated? Ares?" Athena choked in laughter. "Styx drown me but Ares fucks anything in a dress!"
"Why would he when he has you?"
The thought made bile rose to Athena's throat.
"They say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach," Euryale continued, never failing to send irks on the goddess and almost dismembering her, "…So feed him."
Of course Athena knew they were referring to no food.
"You, most of all, knows how dimwitted your Olympian King could be. He was born for bloodshed and sadism and never for democracy and rulership. He takes commands for the kill but only for the kill. While you… you are something else. With you by his side commandeering him, your power as heavenly monarchs will stand a chance. And all you need to do… is keep him to yourself… and not let anyone else sully his concentration."
The Queen was at odds with herself. Surely Euryale was only playing her games on her and she has to dismiss this conversation. It unhinged her that the Serpent had actually started advising her.
"You doubt me," Euryale grinned as usual. And until then she made the Queen's eyes widen did she laugh.
"Didn't they tell you to heed the words of a serpent? This is the beginning of it."
Athena could feel the bullets of cold sweat beginning to accumulate in her scalp. Of all the prior advises she would be having was that related of carnal bargains.
"Well you may not listen to me," the Serpent started to walk around the Queen, her eyes basking on the discomfort of the goddess. "But as I was saying, you need your King no matter how spiteful he could be. A Queen shall not tolerate another to snatch his loyalty to you or else you will find yourself battling with an invisible whisperer on his ear. Someone who he visits when you sleep… or when you fail to satisfy him…"
"A Queen must mark her territory on her husband… she will bare her fangs at temptresses… she will protect her nest."
Athena scoffed. "That… would be too late."
"The golden one, is it? Oh she's a beauty… even I could not resist such attractiveness. Her plain scent is enough to hypnotize a lover," Euryale chuckled.
A dismal contempt only spurred the goddess on and her eyes spoke for everything.
"For heavens' sake, Queen, you are no less than Aphrodite… patron of beauty or not, you are as powerful as her in your own methods," the Serpent admonished, "I am not a man but I know I could definitely bed her…"
Athena may have retched if only she had eaten much, only amusing Euryale deeper. Feeling the air around them seem to banish away from the unthinkable guidance, Athena quickly strode towards the stairs and up the open where they were almost nearing the docks. The Olympian beasts had been waiting.
Athena swiftly entered her doors and there the trembling Nike had immediately fallen to her knees and her palms shut together in plea. The young goddess of victory had tears in her eyes and an unspeakable fear that even Athena could not comprehend.
"I'm – I'm sorry my Queen! I'm sorry!" Nike's shaky voice hailed, "It was the King, he – he threatened me if I would not say where you've gone to. I could not protest, my Queen I'm sorry!"
Athena straightened her lips before sighing out relief. Her mind had expected so much more than the girl frantically apologizing for tipping her husband her whereabout. It was not as if she was crawling on the bed of some consort or sinisterly plotting his murder. Even if she wanted to do the latter.
"Nike," the Queen firmly called the name, "Get to the King's chamber and draw a bath."
She had thought long and hard for this as she rode on Pegasus from the docks of Styx until the gates of Olympus.
Nike's mouth had instantly gone dry. Her face was still stricken with tears she could not understand what her Queen had asked her to do. "Y-your deity?"
Athena repeated her order whilst unclipping her arm plates.
Nike slowly went up to her knees, "A bath? In the Kingschamber?"
"Yes," the Queen quickly answered and Nike hid how she wiped her face before leaving for the doors. Athena stopped her. "Nike, kindly make it for two."
The King strode along the silent hallway gallantly with his helm in a hand. He smelled of havoc and death; he had satiated himself with a good fight and tonight he will drown in wine. His quick strides however stopped upon seeing the Queen's chambermaid on the door to his chamber. She was standing there for what seemed to have been quite a time.
"What are you doing here?" his gruff voice made her skin jump. Nike turned to him and he fed on the terror sheen in her bright blue eyes. She began to stammer, "Th-the Queen, your deity, she… she has something for you,"
Ares peered suspiciously at the serving girl who ran to a different direction and disappeared at the curve. He then moved his blood-stained hands to the door and pushed lightly, the small opening released the smell of perfume and incense. He went in, every muscle ready to move in case something pounces from the shadow.
Instead he saw the pool filled to the rim, the crystalline water emitting faint steam and enticing his body. He was not one who would light all the candles in his great Kingschamber but tonight it glowed amorously. His table was lain with roast meat and robust platters of fruit, beside a tall intricately designed flask of good grape wine.
Later Ares was stark naked lowering himself on the pool, momentarily exhaling in repose at such leisure. Across him, beyond the other edge of the pool he sighted the rest of the Olympian palace where he was on top. The structures glowed so well and so empty he closed his eyes and lounged in the verity that he owned Olympus and every living, breathing thing on it. He owned it and no one will defy him, not even her. He will get back to her, he knew, he had been plotting for so long.
When the King opened his eyes he learned he was not alone.
Ares drew a silhouette standing at the opposite edge of the pool, a womanly figure whose curves were easily highlighted by the airy tunic that covered her skin. His first guess was Aphrodite, but no, the golden one had a particular luster and an amorous stance. This was foreign, she sends him an alien chill that spoke of anything other than plain tits and cunt.
When she spoke he again closed his eyes in half-smile.
"Do you like it?"
"I'm surprised I do," Ares sneered, "You do know how to stir a good conversation." Why wouldn't she, he thought. This was the goddess of intellect he was married to.
"Now given how much you hate your King husband, tell me," Ares moved an arm to send ripples to Athena's feet, "How do I know the water's not poisoned?"
The queen deftly moved her hands to herself and Ares was all eyes on her as she slid the tunic off her body. She dipped a foot on the water and lowered, dousing her skin until she was completely engulfed. Ares felt his breath cut for a moment, even at the time she re-emerged and walked towards him, gathering her hair to her right shoulder and letting the droplets make her skin sparkle.
The hairs on the back of Athena's neck rose at the sight of the unspeakable glow from Ares' eyes. Immediately she reckoned this was not going to be pleasant.
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